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PACKAGING RECYCLING IN NZ |
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NEWSLETTER |
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Recycling Operators Sector 2007 MORE is the catch cry for recyclers The Recycling Operators of New Zealand's (RONZ) members are companies that have invested in, and are committed, to minimising waste through resource recovery, recycling and remanufacturing. These companies are significant employers in most communities. Recycling businesses contributed to the recovery of approximately 400,000 tonnes of packaging, 400,000 tonnes of steel and non-ferrous scrap metal, 70,000 tonnes of concrete, 8500 tonnes of waste oil and 1200 tonnes of electronic equipment in the year to March 2007. A broader survey would show that recyclers in New Zealand are already diverting almost half of the nation's discarded materials and doing so in a socially and environmentally sustainable manner. This demonstrates the value of recycling, to all levels of the New Zealand economy. Recyclers provide multiple environmental benefits and should be actively encouraged by central, regional and local government policies to be innovative and aggressive in their quest for more. RONZ seeks to identify and promote opportunities that result in more volume, more variety and more value in recycling. The industry is excited about the prospect of new opportunities being created by the Waste Minimisation Bill and eagerly anticipates it becoming law in 2008. The industry needs to profit in order to prosper. RONZ seek to identify and promote opportunities that result in more volume, more variety and more value in recycling. A major step was the decision by the Auckland and Manukau councils to collaborate on recycling contracts so volumes would warrant building a 'high-tech' material recovery facility (MRF). The new 'Super-MRF' will be able to sort 80,000 tonnes of recyclable waste yearly from Manukau and Auckland city households and convert more than 95% into reusable product. RONZ has been active on behalf of its members in submitting its response to the Waste Minimisation (Solids) Bill. Whilst for the most part the organisation supports this Bill, it has expressed some concerns. RONZ has also expressed concern at the probable and very negative impact that container deposit legislation would have on the nation's kerbside recycling services. RONZ has continued to work with the packaged goods industry to improve brand owners' understanding of what can be recycled in the New Zealand context and to challenge recyclability claims. RONZ looks to becoming a reference for brand owners on recycling issues and to help them appreciate the impact that poor packaging material selection and incorrect labelling statements has on recycling services and the public's will to participate. A recent example was the collaboration with those promoting the plant based plastic Polylactide (PLA) for packaging as an alternative to PET. PLA is not currently recyclable in New Zealand but RONZ acknowledges that, because PLA is made from annually renewable materials, it may be able to be produced with lower environmental impacts than plastics made with synthesised oil. As a result, stakeholders in PLA resin supply and use have established a Product Stewardship Organisation for PLA. RONZ expects the volume of PLA packaging used and discarded to increase and will monitor consumption, working with brand owners, packaging companies and councils to ensure that, when the timing is right, every recycling operator is able to recover and recycle PLA packaging in all forms and from all applications. During early 2007 RONZ has focused much of its administrative energy on refining its membership structure in order that policy is driven by the core group of recyclers while still welcoming the support and participation of councils and industry bodies such as the Packaging Council. The RONZ website has been redeveloped to include a comprehensive 'public-good' section with separate facilities for businesses and members. The website includes what can and can't be recycled with justifications as to why a particular position is taken or a particular policy advocated by the industry. The aim is to interact with both the public and the business community. The recent expansion of the RONZ National Recycling Database to include 102 recycling businesses in the Greater Wellington Region is just one of the projects underway within the website. This growth shows that entrepreneurs see opportunity in recycling, and that the public is therefore being offered more opportunities to have a greater range of discards recovered and recycled. Research on training needs was published and shows that recycling and waste management is not perceived as a highly regarded career with long term prospects. RONZ members are concerned that this is a reflection of the commercial circumstances around recycling, and that it is a relatively low-margin and unappealing industry. While the solution is not immediately to hand, this research confirms that strategies to put the sector on a firm footing need to be put in place by Government without delay so that investments in mechanisation and up-skilling can be made with confidence. A consequence of the nation's success in advocating, promoting and delivering a business environment that does deliver confidence in the recycling and recovery industry will be that the small recycler start-ups do profit, do expand and do endure and that the electorate expectations for more diversion, more recovery and more recycling are met - for the long term. The industry is excited about the prospect of new opportunities being created by the Waste Minimisation Bill.
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PACKAGING COUNCIL OF NEW ZEALAND |